Tl* the contact owned a 2003 ford focus. While the contact's husband was driving 60 MPH on the freeway, the vehicle began to hydroplane, crashed into a guardrail, and spun around. The vehicle came to a stop in the middle of a highway. The air bags did not deploy. The contact's husband sustained back injuries, facial bruising, and whiplash. The following day the driver sought medical attention for his injuries. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to an impound lot where they refuse the contact to view/take photos of the vehicle unless a fee was paid. The dealer and manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The cause of the failure was not determined. The failure mileage was approximately 267,000.
2003 Ford Focus: airbags did not deploy in a crash
26 of the 977 complaints about the 2003 Ford Focus describe airbags did not deploy in a crash.
- owner complaints
- 26
- of this car's complaints
- 3%
- typical mileage
- 40,000
- recalls
- 0
Is there a fix? 3 service bulletins cover this area of the car. See below
Airbags did not deploy in a crash by model year
What owners say
Tl* the contact owned a 2003 ford focus. The contact stated that while driving 20 MPH, another vehicle crashed into the passenger side and the contact's vehicle spun around. The air bags did not deploy and the front driver's seat belt did not restrain the contact. The contact sustained bruises, contusions, a tear to her spine, a broken rib, and heart problems as a result of the impact to her chest. In addition, the driver of the second vehicle involved in the crash was injured. A police report of the incident was filed. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and did not offer any assistance. The vehicle was declared destroyed. The VIN was not available. The failure and current mileages were 80,000.
On 8/1/2011, going 40mph I hit a deer. The whole hood of my car is pushed in,my radiator is pushed in, I cannot open the hood, the deer is dead and both of the airbags failed to deploy. However my airbag deployment light did come on. What a defect. At 10 MPH I could possible understand but at 40 MPH, I bought the car brand new in 2003 for safety, now even if it were fixed I would be scared to drive it.
2003 ford focus involved in front end collision car was totaled and air bags did not deploy.
2003 ford focus se com was involved in head on whole front end damaged air bags did not deploy until after impact.
2003 focus se com. Was involved in head on accident front end damaged both air bags did not deploy until after impact.
Vehicle involved in serious frontal crash and airbags failed to deploy.
Until a week ago, I was the happy owner of an '03 zx3 focus. On 7/15, I had to swerve to avoid a car drifting into my lane and hit the concrete retaining wall at about 60 MPH. The shock was enough to crush most of the front and engine block and break the axle. Yet the airbags did not deploy. Shame on you ford.
I own a 2003 ford focus ex. On the date of the incident, I was stopped at a red light, and I looked in the rear view mirror and saw a ford mustang barreling down on me. With no time to react, I was hit from behind at 50 miles an hour. What bothers me is that the airbags did not deploy, even though I came deathly close to smashing my face against the steering wheel.
Tl*the contact owns a 2003 ford focus. When the contact placed her vehicle into park, turned it off, and then started it up again, the vehicle surged forward. The contact stated that if it is in drive, the vehicle would surge forward. In addition, the air bags failed to deploy. If the vehicle is in reverse, it would surge backward. The contact only notified the insurance company. A crash occurred and an occupant was injured. The manufacturer has not been notified. The contact stated that the air bags also failed to deploy. The current mileage was 36,600 and failure mileage was 35,000.
I was on my way to tahoe in february 2006. It was rainy and the roads were a little wet. We hit a puddle and he car spun out hit both front and back ends from spinning out of control and smashed into the side walls. We were traveling about 45-50 MPH. The air bag did not go off. From smashing in to the walls the passenger seat completely broke backwards. Almost in a laying down position and the seat belt was completely extended and wouldn't retract. Car was totaled. At the time there were no serious injuries. But 8 months after the accident I started having grand mall seizures.
Dt*: the contact stated the air bags did not deploy during a frontal impact collision. While driving 35 MPH, a vehicle ran a stop sign and the contact's vehicle hit the side of the other vehicle. There was braking before impact. A police report was taken at the scene. The vehicle was towed to an independent repair shop. The entire front end was damaged and the insurance company deemed the vehicle a total loss. The seat belt was worn and there were no injuries. Updated 3/20/2006 -
Service bulletins that may apply
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the 2003 Ford Focus no deployment
Is airbags did not deploy in a crash a common problem on the 2003 Ford Focus?
26 of 977 owner complaints about the 2003 Ford Focus (3%) mention airbags did not deploy in a crash. The model year with the most reports is 2000.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2003 Ford Focus?
There are 0 recalls and 3 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2003 Ford Focus
Stalling 42Won't start 42Door locks 33Steering lock-up 28Grinding brakes 23Fire or smoke 13Brake failure 11Engine failure 11Coil spring 8Jerking 8Loss of power 8Premature wear 8Tire blowout 8Ball joint 7Seat belt 7Slipping 7Won't shift 7Sudden acceleration 7Transmission failure 7Knocking 6Headlights 6Overheating 6Check engine light 5Fuel pump 5Power windows 5Water leak 5Wipers 5
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